Shielded container



June N. RITCHEY SHIELDED CONTAINER Filed Aug. 8, 1957 I INVENTOR. NEIL.F RITCHEY Arm/ye 2,943,208 SHIELDED CONTAINER NeilFQ Ritchey,Westt'oWii, Pa assignor to Knapp-Mills Incorporated, Long Island City,N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Aug 8,- 1957, Ser. No; 677,117 2Claims. (Cl. 250-108) The present invention relates to a container forradioactive materials and more particularly to a container which permitssimplified irradiation procedures and which provides for the safestorage and shipment of radio-' active materials.

The constantly increasing use of radioactive materials has created aneed for a simple, safe, convenient and easily transportable leadshielded container. Many different types of containers are now used forstoring and shipping radioactive materials. Some of these presently usedstorage containers are bulky and heavy and are unsuitable for use asshipping containers. Others of the presently known containers cannot besafely opened without the use of auxiliary shielding means. Typicalknown type of containers utilize a straight storage well which iscovered by a plug or cover. The radioactive source is mounted on a cordor string within the well, usually called a fish line, so that theradioactive source can be lifted out of the container when the cover wasremoved. With this type of container, the removal of the coverimmediately exposes the user to radiation from the storage well so thatan auxiliary shielding means must be provided.

The present invention is an improvement upon presently used leadshielded containers and has for one of its objects the provision of acontainer for radioactive material which can be safely opened withoutthe need of auxiliary shielding means.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a container forradioactive materials which can be used both as a safe storage means anda shipping container.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved andsimplified lead shielded container which is safe, convenient and easilytransported.

Other and further objects of the invention will be obvious upon anunderstanding of the illustrative embodiment about to be described, orwill be indicated in the appended claims, and various advantages notreferred to herein will occur to one skilled in the art upon employmentof the invention in practice.

A preferred embodiment of the invention has been chosen for purposes ofillustration and description and is shown in the accompanying drawings,forming a part of the specification, wherein the single figure shown inthe drawings is a perspective view, partly in section, of a containerembodying the present invention.

Referring to the drawing, the container of the present inventioncomprises a body or cask 1 having a lead core or shield 2 within anouter casing 3.

The cask 1 has a cavity or passageway 4 therein which extends toapproximately the center of the lead shield 2 for housing theradioactive matter or source.

The radioactive matter is contained in a standard capsule 5 which ismounted on one end 6 of a flexible cable or spring 7 and the capsule 5is positioned at the inner end of the passageway 4 by the insertion ofthe cable 7 into the passageway 4. The other end of the flexible cable 7is attached to a cover 8 so that when the cable 7 is fully inserted inthe passageway 4, the

lcg Patented June 28, 1960 cover. 8 abuts-.thecenter portion of thecontainerlidfi.

When the cover, 8. is removed, the flexible cable '7 can.

be withdrawn. from the passageway 4 to withdraw-the radioactive sourcefrom-the cask 1. It will be understood that the flexible cable 7 neednot be attached to the cover 8' and, if desired, the cable may beleftfree of cover 8 to be grasped after. the cover 8 is removed from the lid9.

The passageway 4 has an offset or curving portion init so that: theinner end of the passageway does not communicate on a straight line withits open end. Since the radiation emitted by the radioactive sourcetravels in straight lines, the curving or offset portions in thepassageway 4 prevent the radiation from passing to the open air when thecover 8 is removed as all the rays which are emitted from the sourcewill strike a portion of the lead shield 2 surrounding the passageway 4.

The preferred embodiment of the passageway 4 as illustrated in thedrawing has a substantially helical path. Although a greater or lesserdegree of curvature may be used, the existence of a slight scattering orreflection effect of the radioactive rays or particles from the walls ofthe passageway 4, indicates that slightly more curvature is desirable inpassageway 4 than the curvature which is necessary to displace itsopposite ends from a straight line relationship with each other.Although the passageway 4 may be formed in any convenient manner, asatisfactory method comprises the casting or pouring of the lead shield2 around a hollow tube 10 which is supported during the casting in itsdesired position with respect to the casing 3. The tube 10 is left inplace after the formation of the shield and it serves as a guide for thecapsule 5 and the flexible cable 7. V

The casing 3 may have any suitable shape and is preferably formed of astrong rigid material such as iron or steel. Base members 11 areprovided for support and suitable handles 12 are provided for lifting orotherwise handling the cask 1.

Cooperating latching members 13 and 14 are provided on the cover 8 andthe lid 9 respectively so that the cable 7 may be locked in place with asuitable lock or tamper-proof seal if desired.

When it is desired to remove the capsule 5 from the cask 1, the seal orlook is removed from latching members 13 and 14 and the cable 7 is drawnout of the curved passageway 4 along with the attached capsule 5 byhandle 15 on cover 8.

While one passageway 4 is illustrated and described in the preferredembodiment, it is clear that additional passageways may be provided inthe container to provide for the storage of additional capsules asdesired.

It will be seen from the above that the present invention provides animproved lead shielded container for radioactive materials which can beopened without auxiliary shielding means, which can be used for bothstorage and shipping, and which is simple and relatively inexpensive tomanufacture.

As various changes may be made in the form, con struction andarrangement of the parts herein without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention and without sacrificing any of its advantages, itis to be understood that all matter herein is to be interpreted asillustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention I claim:

1. A container for storing a radioactive substance minal cavity, wherebythe solid radioactive shielding material at the bottom of the terminalcavity is adapted to stop the movement of a body of radioactivesubstance entered through the aperture and passed along the passagewayto positively position the said substance in the terminal cavity andwhereby emanations of radiation from said radioactive substance areobstructed.

2. A container as claimed in claim 1 including a flexible cable having alength equal to that of said passageway and removably positioned thereinhaving its inner end adapted to carry said radioactive substance, and acover adapted to close said outer aperture, the outer end of saidflexible cable being mounted on said cover, whereby closing of saidaperture by said cover will automatieally place said radioactivesubstance in said centrally located terminal cavity.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,750,517 Baum June 12, 1956 2,798,164 Untermyer July 2, 1957 FOREIGNPATENTS 1,079,640 France Dec. 1, 1954

